Say good night, Newt

Newton Leroy Gingrich is not going to get the Republican nomination for President.

Yes, Newt is a good debater; but winning is about much more than brilliant verbal parry-and-thrust on a single night in a debate.

Winning a Presidential nomination is about the long haul: superior organization, consistent message, and attracting more broad based support than one billionaire contributor keeping your campaign afloat.

This week, Newt finished fourth in Illinois behind Ron Paul, after failing to win last week in “must win” Alabama and Mississippi.

He’s campaigning next in Louisiana, where polls show Santorum leading by a wide margin.

Newt, it’s time to call it a night.

Newt has won a plurality in just two states, South Carolina and Georgia, with no prospect of winning any more of the total 56 contests in the nominating process.

By contrast, Romney has won a plurality in 19 states, Santorum in 9 states.

Republican National Convention rule No. 40 plainly says:

“Each candidate for nomination for President of the United States and Vice President of the United States shall demonstrate the support of a plurality of the delegates from each of five or more states, severally, prior to the presentation of the name of that candidate for nomination.”

Gingrich will not win “a plurality of delegates” from three more states.

After Louisiana, the schedule turns to states such as Romney-friendly Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Delaware, Rhode Island, Wisconsin, California, and Utah; and Santorum-friendly Texas.

In no state yet to vote is Gingrich leading. He is third at best.

Santorum and Romney will fight it out in these states, with Romney the front runner after his impressive Illinois win.

I think it’s time for Newt to get out, even while I continue to admire his many past accomplishments,

As a new member of the House of Representatives in 1979, he goaded the ossified Republican House leadership to support the free market, less government, lower tax Reagan Revolution.

Income tax reduction to a top rate of 28% and a “drill, baby, drill” oil policy helped ignite the economy and produce over 20 million new jobs by the end of the 80s.

Over the years, Newt worked to build up the Republican membership in the House culminating in the stunning victory in 1994, which made Newt Speaker of the House as the Republicans were swept into the majority for the first time since 1954.

Newt’s genius then, notably absent in this year’s nomination campaign, was to organize a national campaign around big ideas that voters cared about.

His Contract With America in 1994 addressed issues which swayed voters and won the election.

Among promises made and kept, the contract promised welfare reform– and, after two Clinton vetoes, welfare reform finally got passed.

The permanent entitlement to welfare was abolished, work for welfare was established, and states hadmore say in these programs. The result was fewer people on welfare, more people at work, and lower costs.

The contract promised a balanced federal budget, and Congress delivered two balanced budgets–the only two years of truly balanced federal spending since 1929.

Democrats say President Johnson balanced the budget in 1969, but he did that only by looting the Social Security fund.

For these remarkable accomplishments, Newt was Time Magazine’s Man of the Year in 1995.

Santorum charges that Gingrich is dividing the conservative vote and should get out so that Santorum can unite conservatives and stop Romney.

However, in Illinois, Romney got more votes than Santorum and Gingrich combined.

Santorum has now lost to Romney in Michigan, Ohio, and Illinois, where he said his blue collar and Catholic roots would propel him to victory.

The final Santorum test is on April 24 in his home state of Pennsylvania, where he lost his Senate re-election contest by 18%.

Despite all of this, Gingrich folding his hand nowcould give Santorum one last chance to make the non-Romney case.

Voters deserve to make the call.

As Ron Paul has faded after not winning one state, Gingrich should step aside and Romney and Santorum should face off one-on-one and let the voters decide the nomination in the upcoming contests.